Director's Letter
December 7, 2022
Dear Friends,
I am pleased to announce the publication of three new journal articles that reflect our commitment to furthering the academic debate on several issues of significant concern to US Jewry.
Two of our latest publications, part of a special issue of the journal Contemporary Jewry, include a re-analysis of the Pew Research Center’s Jewish Americans in 2020 study:
- According to their numbers: Assessing the Pew Research Center's estimate of 7.5 million Jewish Americans. Having a recognized and valid US Jewish population estimate is critical for evaluating levels of engagement and participation in the US Jewish community. In this article, we examine Pew’s population estimate in its 2020 study of Jewish Americans and how it relates historically to other estimates. We then compare Pew’s findings to other recent studies. We conclude that there is considerable evidence of the validity of Pew’s estimate.
- The reach and impact of Birthright Israel: What we can learn from Pew’s “Jewish Americans in 2020.” This paper analyzes Pew’s data to assess the impact of participation in Birthright Israel. Focusing on the age group (18-46) that was eligible to participate in the program, we estimate the program’s impact by using statistical models that compare individuals who traveled to Israel on a Birthright trip and those who had never been to Israel. The results demonstrate
Birthright’s impact on Jewish identity and engagement among American Jews and validate much of our previous research (which focused on Birthright applicants).
Our article, Antisemitism and polarization: The political dynamics of American Jewish concerns about traditional and Israel-related antisemitism, published in the journal Politics, Groups, and Identities is part of our ongoing effort to understand contemporary antisemitism. In this article, we examine the intersection of Jewish young adults' concerns about traditional and Israel-related antisemitism as they relate to political identity. This study is part of a program of research that expands our focus on antisemitism and attempts to identify strategies to address new threats.
We are also moving ahead with a major new research effort to synthesize data from more than two dozen of our recent local Jewish community studies. One goal of this project is to be able to understand the attitudes and behaviors of subgroups (such as Jews of Color and single parents) that cannot be adequately studied in a single community study. We believe this effort will enhance the understanding of contemporary Jewish life and provide useful findings that can help shape communal policy.
Best wishes to all for the coming holiday season.
Leonard Saxe, PhD
Klutznick Professor of Contemporary Jewish Studies and Social Policy
Director, Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies and Steinhardt Social Research Institute at Brandeis University